How to Turn your Photography Portfolio into a YouTube Slideshow

So I took the plunge and created my first YouTube video this week. I gave it quite a lot of thought; what could I do as a photographer on YouTube that is different from the norm?

I do not think I am the kind of person who wants to be a presenter of tutorial videos, nor do I want to sit around doing voice overs for Photoshop presentations that have been done thousands of times before on YouTube.

I wanted to do something simple, that would not consume all of my time, so I came round to the idea of putting my photography portfolio on YouTube. I have seen other photographers do this. If not to get a great view count and a large subscriber base, then a new avenue of exposure for my work, and an interesting new form of creativity, will be satisfactory.

I'm pretty sure that I am not going to get the views of Casey Neistat, or even some brand new YouTuber and their cat, but I wanted to create a fresh concept for my portfolio, and so that is what I accomplished.

This tutorial could not be simpler; make sure that you have some good quality JPEGs from your portfolio that are ready to upload, click the upload button on the top of the YouTube page from your account.

On the bottom right of the screen there is a Photo Slideshow, 'Create’ button.

Click that.

Then upload photos from your computer.

Once your photos are uploaded scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click ‘next’.

The next page shows a preview of your automatically created slideshow video with a selection of audio tracks on the right of the page.

If you do not have your own music to upload, you can choose one of YouTube's generous, ad-free tunes, from various musical styles.

On this page you can also choose your slide duration, the slide effect, and the transition from photo to photo.

After you have selected your audio track, you can then click on 'Advanced Editor' to get an array of options including Creative Commons Videos, add more photos, audio (which we have already done), video transition effects and title slides.

I added a ‘centred title slide’ and called it ‘www.redtownphotography.com- weird and wonderful’, and also in the form on top of the video I added the actual title of the video.

Once you click 'Create Video', wait for the processing to complete, click the little edit sign, then in the 'Basic Info' tab, you can then add a description to the video, using SEO keywords in the top of the description that relate to your video, (more info here) and there is also a form where you can add relevant tags, that help describe your video for search purposes.

There is also an option for any translations you may require and Advanced Settings where you can disallow comments, enable age restrictions, choose your genre category and more.

Remember to switch from 'Public' to 'Private' until you completely ready to go live (Public)!

Once your video is published you can make further enhancements such as slow motion, color temparature and more, you can also change the audio, add an End screen and Annontations, Cards, (which are like highlights that are overlayed on your video, where you can direct viewers to your other videos and more), and also subtitles.

It couldn't be simpler for photographers to create a slideshow for their photography on YouTube, which features an audio track that adds a certain ambience to your photos.

Is it a necessity? I think not. Yet I feel this is more interesting then just viewing photos on a website, or on Flickr. If not for every photographer, for some it is another route, a new creative approach, to get your work noticed.